Leadership Development
Leadership is an action, not a position. Leadership is about influence. Any person has the ability to influence others and situations and thus we all have the ability to lead. Here’s how leaders develop:
- Leaders become aware of their ability to influence
- Leaders recognize and honor their ability to influence
- Leaders develop skills and qualities that allow for greater influence
- Leaders choose what to influence in the world and then take action
Leadership is a choice and my leadership workshops focus on helping people choose to lead and enhance their ability to lead. For organizations to innovate and keep pace with change, leadership needs to be spread throughout the organization with everyone ready and able to lead. Top-down leadership is too slow and just not intelligent enough for today’s world. Leadership needs to happen at all levels: executive, first line supervisor, hourly team, and front-line customer service provider can all lead.
Organizations are frequently locked into a notion of leadership being the task of the few people at the top of the organization. When leadership is concentrated within a small group, the immense knowledge, experience, and creativity of people throughout the organization is untapped. Leaders at the top need to develop the ability to listen as well as lead and people throughout the organization need to have the skills, confidence, and freedom to influence events.
Many leaders approach their work from a perspective that seeks to find and correct problems. In contrast to this problem-focused style, I emphasize a positive leadership approach that is based on Appreciative Inquiry, Positive Psychology, and Emotional Intelligence. This positive approach produces better results, boosts morale, and fosters a more creative atmosphere.
My leadership workshops range from brief sessions of a half day or less to multiple day workshops. I also provide coaching for individual leadership development. All of my efforts are built on the belief that everyone in the organization has the ability to lead and organizations are at their best when everyone leads.
“I have, in my days on the planet, encountered a number of good mediators, top notch folks who work to realign people and businesses and families in positive directions. You are one of the best I’ve seen.”
– Robin Brennan-Perez, Teacher